Modern India: Are Muslims Safe In A Hindu India?

While Hindus have no freedom in any Muslim country, is there any country that gives more freedom or safety than India to Muslims.

Indian Muslims thought that Hindus cannot be trusted. If some of you still have doubts, the gates to Pakistan are still open | A March 2004 cartoon by Zahoor.

In an atmosphere of mistrust, being a Muslim and on top of that a ‘rebelling’ Kashmiri is a double whammy. For such a person like me, to articulate my unexpressed feelings about Bal Thackeray, whom I earnestly believe to have lived his entire life as a demagogue if not a blood-letting fascist, even within my deep thought processes sounded to be a sacrilegious act.

Bier draped in Tricolour and not only people like LK Advani, the ideological equivalent of the deceased leader, but also the apparently staunch political rivals like Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and Sharad Pawar making all efforts to be seen amongst the sea of people at Shivaji Park was enough to cast a drowning feeling that the country has already accorded its recognition to a man who divided the society not only on religious lines but also on the very basis of regional identities. Moreover, the so-called leading lights of civil society, normally considered to be the standard-bearers of the public behaviour, also making a beeline to pay their homage sapped all the courage within me to register my dissent.

My question is to the authorities who decided to bestow an honour of state funeral to the departed leader: Was he a constitutional figure that warranted a gun salute? Obviously he was not and in case his popularity necessitated a military honour then the powers to be are setting a very dangerous precedent. If a state recognition to a divisive figurehead in his death was out of compulsion as two-million mourners joined the funeral, then it truly underscores the sorry state of affairs.

In case tomorrow a majority of India turns out to be supporters of Gandhiji’s killer, will the cowardly rulers, having no conviction left, declare Nathuram Godse as the new father of the nation? And provided the rulers affirm not to be cowards and claim that the decision to accord gun salute to the funeral of a Hindu extremist leader who believed India to be a Hindu Rashtra was made purely on merit, then what stops India to be a Hindu state in near future?

The brute and raucous majority only has to decide the fate of the nation and not the secular principles as the rulers pretend to follow, and then what inhabits us not to dread that the soul of India has been lost, since long?

Birbal’s beard

Does this article also remind you of चोर कि दाड़ी में तिनका (roughly meaning: guilty conscience pricks the mind)? I was grossly reminded of Birbal feeling his way through the beards of possible suspects.

Bad Hiding Place

Hiding behind Gandhiji’s loin-cloth, we have Firdous Syed raising a spectre of Nathuram Godse becoming the Father of the Nation. To nurse and espouse such an idea just shows what poor opinion the English-speaking elite have of Indians.

If he counts himself as an Indian – it is a sad reflection on his self-esteem. If he sees himself as a pragmatic Indian – till he can get a better passport, it just shows complete lack of character.

While on the subject of Gandhiji, two points.

One, like Bal Thackeray, Gandhiji had no constitutional or official capacity. Would Firdous Syed deny Gandhiji similar tribute? The Indian State gains by respecting Gandhiji. Gandhiji did not need a Nobel Prize to gain respect and admiration.

The other point. The last man to accept the partition of India was Gandhiji. To give security to all the Indian Muslims who felt insecure in a Hindu India. That was the deal, Firdous Syed. You can still go to Pakistan, if you are feeling insecure in Hindu-India.

Alibaba ate food without salt

Of the Forty thieves fame, ate salt-less food at the den of thieves. That is the respect, Muslim culture is supposed to have for hospitality. If you, Firdous Syed are using Indian nationality as a temporary shelter, at least have some basic respect for your Hindu hosts – while you get a passport of your choice.

If you are the Kashmiri-azaadi spouting liberal, let me see you criticize any Muslim-separatist, sitting in Srinagar. On any day of the week – leave alone a Friday. While Hindus have no freedom in any Muslim country, is there any country that gives more freedom or safety than India to Muslims.

Or are you, Firdous Syed assuming that who you calls Hindus are like Pakistanis who showered rose-petals on Salman Taseer killers? On the subjects of those who you call Hindus, has it ever occurred to you, to ask a question, why Hindu-Indians are welcome in secular Britain – but Pakis has become a pejorative?

Facebook, Facebook on the wall

Firdous Syed, are you aware that secular Great Britain, has prosecuted, fined, imprisoned nearly 5000 people in the last three years for making ‘insensitive’ comments on social media. That Vikram Buddhi languishes in an American prison because he said George Bush murdabad on the internet – in support of Iraqi Muslims.

A very nice shot at Firdous’s posterior. Do these guys even realise the kind of freedom they enjoy in India??

S

November 29, 2012 at 4:46 am

another secular muslim whines about the oppression” by Hindus, what bullshit!! Hindus are the most discriminated in their own country. while muslims and chriistians enjoy special freedoms in the garb of being a “minority”. The only thing muslims are good at is whining and breeding. Even in well to do families, there are 5-6 children and then they cry that they are poor, not because they have created a family that is twice as large as a normal non-muslim families, but because they were discriminated by the “evil” hindus. Let end this drama already….Idon’t even know why they are in our country… pakistan was created for these “oppressed” people, this is a Hindu country now, I wish these people would run back to saudi arabia or persia, back to their masters.

Intrigued? Interested!

The 2ndlook blogs group try to give its readers a 360° view of the past present and probable outcomes. These four blogs have each a different focus. The common value that runs through these blogs is an invite to readers for discussion and participation - with a proviso of no personal attacks or use of invective.

With a focus on history, long-term trends, economy, political and social models. A blog that works to breakdown propaganda for what it is. The first blog of the group, over the four years of its existence, it has managed a monthly traffic of more than 10,000 hits.

Quicktake focusses more on current events, recent events, reports, media buzz, matters of topical interests. Typically, Quicktakes are shorter than 2ndlook. Sometimes a few Quicktakes, morph into a 2ndlook post.

Top Vote getters

Quicktake’N’

2ndlook on Indus Valley-Saraswati Basin

Exciting new series. From 1 Mar, 2010.

10 posts. More than 50 photographs. 100 links to the best original sources and writers. Get a 2ndlook at the 'Indus Valley Civilization' research. On military, defence, currency, travel, political systems. Cutting edge discoveries. With research from more than 200 news items, journals and books. Without the politics, with insight.